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RSMo 577.001effective 28 Aug 2020

Chapter definitions

In plain English

This law gives definitions for words used in Missouri's chapter on driving/boating while intoxicated. It explains what counts as being 'intoxicated,' and sets up different levels of repeat offenders — prior, persistent, aggravated, chronic, and habitual — based on how many drunk driving or drunk boating offenses a person has on their record. The more offenses someone has, especially ones involving injuries or deaths, the higher the offender level.

Word-for-word law

577.001. Chapter definitions. — As used in this chapter, the following terms mean:

(1) "", a person who has been of:

(a) Three or more s committed on separate occasions; or

(b) Two or more intoxication-related traffic offenses committed on separate occasions where at least one of the intoxication-related traffic offenses is an committed in violation of any state law, , any federal offense, or any military offense in which the was operating a vehicle while and another person was injured or killed;

(2) "", a person who has been found guilty of:

(a) Three or more s; or

(b) Two or more intoxication-related boating offenses committed on separate occasions where at least one of the intoxication-related boating offenses is an offense committed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, any federal offense, or any military offense in which the defendant was operating a while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed;

(3) "", any motorized vehicle manufactured and used exclusively for off- use, with an of one thousand five hundred or less, traveling on three, four or more nonhighway tires, with either:

(a) A seat designed to be straddled by the , or with a seat designed to carry more than one person, and handlebars for steering control; or

(b) A width of fifty inches or less, measured from outside of tire rim to outside of tire rim, regardless of seating or steering arrangement;

(4) "Court", any , associate circuit, or court, including traffic court, but not any or treatment court;

(5) "", a person who has been found guilty of:

(a) Four or more intoxication-related traffic offenses committed on separate occasions; or

(b) Three or more intoxication-related traffic offenses committed on separate occasions where at least one of the intoxication-related traffic offenses is an offense committed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, any federal offense, or any military offense in which the defendant was operating a vehicle while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed; or

(c) Two or more intoxication-related traffic offenses committed on separate occasions where both intoxication-related traffic offenses were offenses committed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, any federal offense, or any military offense in which the defendant was operating a vehicle while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed;

(6) "", a person who has been found guilty of:

(a) Four or more intoxication-related boating offenses; or

(b) Three or more intoxication-related boating offenses committed on separate occasions where at least one of the intoxication-related boating offenses is an offense committed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, any federal offense, or any military offense in which the defendant was operating a vessel while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed; or

(c) Two or more intoxication-related boating offenses committed on separate occasions where both intoxication-related boating offenses were offenses committed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, any federal offense, or any military offense in which the defendant was operating a vessel while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed;

(7) "", automatically testing breath, blood, or levels and attempts at least once every hour, regardless of the location of the person who is being monitored, and regularly transmitting the data. Continuous alcohol monitoring shall be considered an electronic monitoring under 3 of section 217.690;

(8) "", a drug, substance, or in schedules I to V listed in section 195.017;

(9) "Drive", "driving", "operates" or "operating", physically driving or operating a vehicle or vessel;

(10) "Flight crew member", the pilot in command, copilots, flight engineers, and flight navigators;

(11) "", a person who has been found guilty of:

(a) Five or more intoxication-related traffic offenses committed on separate occasions; or

(b) Four or more intoxication-related traffic offenses committed on separate occasions where at least one of the intoxication-related traffic offenses is an offense committed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, any federal offense, or any military offense in which the defendant was operating a vehicle while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed; or

(c) Three or more intoxication-related traffic offenses committed on separate occasions where at least two of the intoxication-related traffic offenses were offenses committed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, any federal offense, or any military offense in which the defendant was operating a vehicle while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed;

(12) "", a person who has been found guilty of:

(a) Five or more intoxication-related boating offenses; or

(b) Four or more intoxication-related boating offenses committed on separate occasions where at least one of the intoxication-related boating offenses is an offense committed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, any federal offense, or any military offense in which the defendant was operating a vessel while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed; or

(c) Three or more intoxication-related boating offenses committed on separate occasions where at least two of the intoxication-related boating offenses were offenses committed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, any federal offense, or any military offense in which the defendant was operating a vessel while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed; or

(d) While boating while intoxicated, the defendant acted with to:

a. Cause the death of any person not a passenger in the vessel operated by the defendant, including the death of an individual that results from the defendant's vessel leaving the water; or

b. Cause the death of two or more persons; or

c. Cause the death of any person while he or she has a of at least eighteen-hundredths of one percent of alcohol in such person's blood;

(13) "Intoxicated" or "", when a person is under the influence of alcohol, a controlled substance, or drug, or any combination thereof;

(14) "Intoxication-related boating offense", operating a vessel while intoxicated; boating while intoxicated; operating a vessel with or an offense in which the defendant was operating a vessel while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, any federal offense, or any military offense;

(15) "Intoxication-related traffic offense", driving while intoxicated, driving with excessive blood alcohol content, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs in violation of a state law, county or municipal ordinance, any federal offense, or any military offense, or an offense in which the defendant was operating a vehicle while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, any federal offense, or any military offense;

(16) "" or "arresting officer", includes the definition of law enforcement officer in section 556.061 and military policemen conducting traffic operations on a federal military installation under military in the state of Missouri;

(17) "Operate a vessel", to physically control the movement of a vessel in under mechanical or sail power in water;

(18) "", a person who has been found guilty of:

(a) Two or more intoxication-related traffic offenses committed on separate occasions; or

(b) One intoxication-related traffic offense committed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, federal offense, or military offense in which the defendant was operating a vehicle while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed;

(19) "", a person who has been found guilty of:

(a) Two or more intoxication-related boating offenses committed on separate occasions; or

(b) One intoxication-related boating offense committed in violation of any state law, county or municipal ordinance, federal offense, or military offense in which the defendant was operating a vessel while intoxicated and another person was injured or killed;

(20) "", a person who has been found guilty of one intoxication-related traffic offense, where such prior offense occurred within five years of the of the intoxication-related traffic offense for which the person is charged;

(21) "", a person who has been found guilty of one intoxication-related boating offense, where such prior offense occurred within five years of the occurrence of the intoxication-related boating offense for which the person is charged.

Tap any gold-underlined word to see what it means.

Red section numbers link to that law.

Source & history notes

(L. 1982 S.B. 513, A.L. 1986 H.B. 1531, A.L. 1996 H.B. 1169 & 1271 merged with S.B. 722, A.L. 2005 H.B. 972 merged with S.B. 37, et al., A.L. 2014 S.B. 491, A.L. 2014 H.B. 1371, A.L. 2015 S.B. 254, A.L. 2016 H.B. 2332, A.L. 2017 S.B. 34, A.L. 2018 1st Ex. Sess. H.B. 2, A.L. 2020 H.B. 1963)

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Legal information, not legal advice. Always confirm with the official source at revisor.mo.gov.

RSMo 577.001: Chapter definitions | KnowMo Laws